A new report out of California from Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton claims that the state’s bureaucracy and excessive red tape are costing each household more than $55,000 annually, amounting to nearly $1 trillion statewide.
Hilton revealed that the number is more than double the financial burden of any other state as he vowed to put the state's regulatory structure "into the wood chipper," and bring business back to the Golden State.
🚨NEW: Our second Bloat Report by CAL DOGE:
— Steve Hilton (@SteveHiltonx) May 28, 2026
- Regulations cost California $745 BILLION a year
- $55,000 for every household
- More than double the burden of any other state
As governor I will put our bloated nanny state bureaucracy in the wood chipper. We'll overtake GERMANY to… pic.twitter.com/IKVPlOxNL6
"I'm going to be putting the bloated nanny state bureaucracy in Sacramento into the wood chipper. We estimate that the actual impact of all this bloat in our government is $745 billion, nearly a trillion dollars, just from all this red tape and bureaucracy," Hilton revealed. "The actual cost per household when you add it up, $55,000."
"If you look at the comparison between California and the states where businesses are moving to, Texas, Tennessee, and Florida, all these other states it's less than half of the restrictions. So the very minimum, we've got to cut the bloat in Sacramento by at least 50 percent," he said. "We're now the state with the highest poverty rate in the country, the highest unemployment rate, the highest cost of living, 50th out of 50 states for business climate. Bloat and bureaucracy they're a huge part of that. So we're never going to achieve our goals unless we cut it back."
This comes as Hilton continues to lead the state's gubernatorial race, holding a slight lead over the top Democratic contender and former Secretary of Health and Human Services, Xavier Becerra.
California Governor primary advancer odds:
— Kalshi Politics (@KalshiPolitics) May 27, 2026
🟥 Steve Hilton: 84%
🟦 Xavier Becerra: 81%
🟦 Tom Steyer: 35%
All others under 5% pic.twitter.com/B55a8FQ6mU
Hilton is expected to advance to the state's general election, although it remains unclear if he will be able to hold onto that lead once the field has been narrowed down to only two candidates.
Becerra is set to hold a significant advantage, drawing much of his support from Gov. Gavin Newsom’s political base.
However, the state’s conservatives remain hopeful that Hilton’s performance, along with that of Los Angeles mayoral candidate Spencer Pratt, signals a changing tide in the state’s political landscape.